Textile manufacture



Nov. ll, 1941.

F. M. PECK TEXTILE MANUFACTURE Filed June '7, 1939' 2 Sheets-sheet 1Nav. 1l, 1941. F. M. PEcK 2,262,589

' TEXTILE MANUFAGTURE Filed June 7, 1939 2 sheets-sheet 2 Z @m &` x34@RGD f f5 30 oo o o 3 .J-z Y Patented Nov. 11, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE TEXTILE MANUFACTURE Frank M. Peck, McGirk, Mo.

Application June 7, 1939, Serial No. 277,794

15 Claims.

This invention relates generally to textile machinery and particularlyto a process and apparatus for rolling and condensing roving as it isdelivered from a condensing machine. In the following description theinvention will be disclosed with particular reference to the treatmentof carded woolens, but it will be understood that the invention islikewise applicable to the treatment of other textile materials, such ascotton, rayon, etc.

Heretofore in the manufacture of textile materials, such as cardedwoolens, the woolen stock has been subjected to treatment on the usualcarding machine which delivers the stock, after condensation, in theform of a condensed roving. Subsequently the condensed roving is treatedupon a spinning apparatus which may be either a spinning frame, a mule,or any suitable Well known apparatus for twisting and drawing thetextile material so as to produce a yarn of substantial strength.

The present invention contemplates generally the application of anauxiliary rolling apparatus to a condenser. Such rolling apparatus maybe operated to roll the textile material received from the condenser soas to condense and' harden the strand.

The invention further contemplates a special rolling apparatus which,while peculiarly adapted for use as an adjunct to a condenser, may alsobe advantageously employed in a variety of twisting operations as, forexample, in doubling or twisting two or more strands together to formcords, twines, yarns, etc.

The object of the present invention, generally stated, is to provide aprocess and apparatus for additionally condensing and hardening textilestock which has been preliminarily condensed by rolling the stock by therolling elements adapted to apply an appropriate pressure thereto.

A further object of the present invention is to provide such anapparatus which may be arranged to further condense textile roving as itemerges from a preliminary condensing apparatus.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide an apparatus forrolling textile roving, constructed and arranged so as to becontrollable to adjust or vary the speed of rolling and the pressureapplied to the work during the rolling operation.

Other objects will become apparent to those skilled in the art when thefollowing description is read in connection with the accompanyingdrawings which illustrate an embodiment of Figure l is a diagrammaticview, in side elevation, showing the elemental structure of aconventional condensing apparatus together with the rolling apparatus ofthe present invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective View, somewhat diagrammatic in form,illustrating the relation of the rolling apparatus of the presentinvention to a conventional condensing unit.

Figure 3 is a view, in side elevation, showing one embodiment of therolling apparatus constructed in accordance with the present inventionin operative association with one bank of a conventional condensingmachine.

Figure 4 is an end view of the apparatus shown in Figure 3.

The present invention contemplates speciiically the provision of a pairof endless belts arranged in such manner that the roving from thecondensing apparatus may be fed between spans of the respective beltswhich operate adjacent and parallel with each other, but move inopposite directions. The roving is fed between the oppositely movingspans, just referred to, and is rolled therebetween so as to condensethe roving to an extent which will be determined in accordance with thedesired result. Suitable means may be provided for controlling therelative speeds of travel of the respective belts thereby controllingthe extent of rolling of the roving between the belts. In ordertocontrol the direction in which the material emerges from between therolling belts, suitable means may be provided for varying the specificspeed of one of the belts above or below the specic speed of the otherbelt.

Any suitable means for reeling or winding the material after it has beentreated by the rolling belts may be employed in conjunction with thepresent invention. It is desirable, however, that any such reeling orwinding apparatus be so constructed and arranged that a slight draughtmay be applied to the stranded material. The degree of draught appliedwill be dependent upon the character of the material being treated aswell as upon the character of the material it is sought to produce. Inpractically all cases, however, it is desirable to have the material,between the rolling belts and the winding apparatus, under at least sometension in order to facilitate the feeding of the material between therolling belts and to prevent knotting'or kinking.

In 'the embodiment shown in the drawings the rolling apparatus isillustrated as applied to but one bank of rubbing aprons of the usualcondensing machine, but it will be understood that a similar rollingapparatus may be associated with each bank of rubbing aprons.

Referring now to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings a ribbon of textilestock I is fed by a tape 2, or any other suitable separating device, toa pair of rubbing aprons 3 and 4 in accordance with the usual practicein condensing machinery. The rubbing aprons 3 and 4 may be operated inthe direction indicated by the arrows and also oscillated in accordancewith conventional practice j drawings, consists of a pair of-endless4belts 6 and 'I operating at right angles to the direction of operationof rubbing aprons 3 and 4. The belts 6 and I are arranged'with respectto each other so that the lower span 8 of thebelt 6 runs parallel withand adjacent to, yet in the opposite direction to, the upper span 9 ofbelt l. Between the lower span 8 of belt 6 and the upper span 9 of belt'I, roving 5 is fed. When the roving is in position between the belts asjust described, it is apparent that upon operation of the belts theroving will be rolled so as to become condensed, and the extent ofrolling is dependent upon the relative speeds of the oppositelyfmovingbelts as well as upon the frictional characteristics thereof. Thematerial emerges from between belts 6 and 'I in the form of additionallycondensed stranded material I0. In the diagrammatic showing of Figure 3but seven ends of textile material are shown as being under treatment bythe rubbing aprons and by the rolling apparatus of the presentinvention, but it will be understood that any desired number of ends maybe so treated, and the rolling belts are advantageously made of suchlength as to treat the full number of ends delivered from the condensingapparatus.

The rolling belts 6 and I may be formed of any material havingfrictional characteristics such as to cause the roving to rolltherebetween. Leather of the type employed in rubbing aprons may be usedwith advantage.

As the rolled material I0 is delivered from between belts 6 and 'I, itmay be wound upon a suitable reeling device, such as bobbin I I. Anysuitable arrangement for driving the Winding devices, which may be inthe form of reels, spools, bobbins, or the like, may be employed, but itis desirable to employ a winding device capable of applying some tensionto the rolled material I0 in order to prevent kinking of that materialas well as to facilitate the feeding of the material through the rollingdevice.

Referring now to Figures 3 and 4, an operative embodiment of theinvention is shown as applied to a conventional condensing apparatus ofa cardingmachine. In Figures 3 and 4 the reference characters applied todiagrammatic elements in Figures 1 and 2 denote corresponding parts inthe operative structure shown in Figures 3 and 4 and consequently detaildescription of them will not be repeated.

The belt 6 is mounted upon a pair of pulleys I2 and I3 and the belt 'Iis mounted upon a corresponding pair of pulleys I4 and I5. Therespective pulleys are so arranged that the belts 6 and I will operateparallel to each other with a slight space therebetween in order toaccommodate the roving ends 5 in the process of being rolled, and asuitable arrangement for driving the pulleys, hereinafter more fullydescribed, is provided. The belt supporting pulleys are mounted uponsuitable shafts, sucli as I6, II, I8 and I9. Adjacent the pulleys theshafts such as I6 are mounted in suitable bearings, such as 28, and thebearings are in turn carried upon a support 2|, one such being providedfor each of the pulleys I2, I3, I4 and I5. In the embodiment shown, thesupport 2| consists of a yoke 22 having a shank part 23 connected toframe 24 in any suitable manner. For example, the shank part 23 may passthrough an aperture in frame 24, in order to facilitate adjustment ofthe belts 6 and l. A locking device consisting of a bushing 25 and a setscrew 25a may be provided in connection with frame 24.

The pulleys supporting one of the belts, as for example the pulleys I2and I3 which support the upper belt 6 may be provided With fianges |20and |30, which may be of greater extent than the depth of the beltthereon, as shown. In this manner the flanges extend beyond the belt 6and operate notonly to maintain the belt 6 in alignment with pulleys I2and I3, but, because of the overlapping of the flanges, also maintainbelt l in alignment with pulleys I4 and I5.

In order to provide for fine adjustments in the tension of the belts,one of the supports for each belt may be provided with an adjustingdevice which may consist of a screw 26 having its head seated against anabutment 2'I on bushing 25 and having its threaded part in engagementwith an internally threaded opening 28 in an extension 29 on yoke 23.

The frame 24, it will be understood, is a part of the framework of thecondensing apparatus, such as employed in the usual carding machine Inthe drawings only that part of frame 24 which consists of the topsection of the usual condensing machine is shown, but it will beunderstood that the frame may bevof any desired width so as toaccommodate a condensing apparatus having a capacity for the desirednumber of ends. Likewise the length of belts 6 and 'I will vary inaccordance with the capacity of the machine, it being ordinarilyarranged that belts 6 and 'I are of such length as to receive all of theends delivered by a single bank of rubbing aprons.

The rolling apparatus may be driven by any suitable source of power, notshown, so as to rotate shaft I8. Shaft I8 may be provided with suitablegears such as 38 to receive the power from a driving member and on theopposite end thereof pulley I4 is directly mounted. Mounted on shaft I8between pulleyl4 and gear 30 is a frictional cone member 3I having adriving band 32 arranged for operation backand forth longitudinally ofthe cone member 3|. Driving band 32 is provided with an internaldiameter sufficient to accommodate the greatest diameter cone 3|.Cooperating with cone 3I and driving band 32 is a complementary cone 33mounted upon a.

shaft 34 and in frictional vengagement with driving band 32. Shaft 34may be mounted in suitable bearings 35 and 36 and is provided with agear 31 meshing with a gear 38, the'latter being mounted upon shaft I6.With the arrangement, just described, it is apparent that a driving'force imparted to shaft I8 will be directly transmitted so as to causerotation of pulley I4, and will be transmitted through cone 3|, drivingband 32, cone 33, and gears 3l and 38 to drive pulley I2.

In order to vary the speeds of rotation of pulleys l2 and I4, andconsequently to vary the specic speeds of travel of belts 6 and 1,driving band 32 maybe traversed longitudinally of cone 3|. In order toaccomplish this a shipper 39 is provided. The shipper may comprise amember having a pair of prongs 40 and 4l embracing the sides of drivingband 32. The shipper 39 is arranged on trunnions to be traversed backand forth between guide rails 42 pursuant to manipulation of a handwheel 43 which is connected to shipper 39 by a worm 44 in accordancewith well known practice.

It will be apparent, therefore, that manipulation of hand wheel 43 willeffect a control of the direction in which the rolled material emergesfrom between belts 6 and 1 so as to compensate for any factors which maytend to pull the ma,- terial out of line. For example, the frictionalcharacteristics of one belt may be different from those of the otherwith the result that upon rolling of the roving between the belts, it istranslated sidewise. This may be compensated for by running the belts atdifferent specific speeds so as to maintain the rolled material in thedesired line of delivery. Characteristics of the material being treatedmay also effect the direction of delivery, but in any event thesefactors may be compensated for by adjustment of driving band 32 so as torun belts and 'I at slightly different speciiic speeds.

The degree of rolling of the roving fed between belts 6 and 1 may bevaried by varying the speed of driving shaft i8. Increase in the speedof the drive shaft I8 increases the speed of both belts and consequentlyimparts a greater number of turns to the roving as it is treated by therolling apparatus. Mechanism for controlling the speed of shaft I8 maybe of any suitable type well known in the mechanical arts and is notshown.

In order to uniformly roll the multiplicity of ends of roving 5 whichwill-be concurrently treated by belts 6 and 'l means may be provided forinsuring that a substantially uniform pressure will be applied to all ofthe ends as they pass between belts 5 and 1. In order to accomplishthis, a platen 45 having a reenforcing and stiffening rib 46 may be somounted as to form a flat supporting structure for span 9 of belt I inthe region at which the ends 5 will be treated. In order to provide foradjustment of platen 45 ina direction normal to the belt thereon a pairof legs 41 and 48 may be provided thereon. The legs 41 and 48 may bearranged in adjustable relation within bosses 49 and 50 suitablyconnected to frame 24 of the machine. In the embodiment shown in thedrawings bosses 49 and 50 are integral parts with shanks 23 of thepulley support yokes, but it is obvious that they may be separatelymounted. Suitable set screws 5| and 52 may be provided in the bosses forlocking legs 4l and 43 in the position selected for applying the desiredpressure upon the ends of roving passing between the belts.

A similar platen 53 may be correspondingly mounted in inverted relationon the inside of the lower span 3 of the belt 6 so as to provide forapplying a downward pressure upon the belts. The surface of platens 45and 53 which contact with the insides of belts 1 and 6 respectively,should be formed so as to apply a minimum of friction to the contiguousbelt parts and should be maintained in parallelism so as to insure thatuniform pressure will be applied to the Various roving ends passingbetween the belts.

Under some circumstances'and in the treatment of some materials it maynot be feasible to apply the necessary degreel ofl draught to thestranded material through the medium of the winding apparatus. In suchcases suitable means may be provided for traversing the rollingapparatus back and forth in the direction of travel of the ends thereby,in successive stepsto roll and tension the roving between thel rubbingaprons and the rolling apparatus. When such a traversing mechanismv isused, it is 'desirable to separate the belts of the rolling apparatuslon the return stroke (movement toward rubbing aprons) and to providesome means for preventing `retraction of the rolled material. Forexample, 'a pair of nipper rrolls may be provided to grip the rolledmaterial while the rolling apparatus is moving on.' the return stroke,'but preferably so arranged as to permit the rolled material to readilypass when the rolling apparatus is being traversedaway from the rubbingaprons. Alternatively the winding apparatus may be coordinated with thetraversing mechanism to prevent retraction of the rolled material.

While the foregoing disclosure has treated the rolling apparatus of thepresent invention as an adjunct or attachment to the conventionalcondenser, it is to be distinctly understood that the rolling apparatusof the present invention may be employed in any relation of parts forrolling preliminarily condensed roving to the desired eX- tent tofurther condense it. The invention is not limited to the use of therolling apparatus disclosed in connection with rubbing aprons of thetype referred to for the purpose of illustration, but may beadvantageously used in connection with any suitable condensingapparatus, the only requirement being that the textile stock, beforebeing fed to the rolling Aapparatus of the present invention, must havereceived some preliminary condensation.

Furthermore a rolling apparatus, of the type herein disclosed may beused in a 'variety of other twisting and doubling operations. Forexample, two or more preliminarily condensed strands of roving, or twoor more spun threads y may be fed to the rolling apparatus in suchadjacence or contiguity as to be rolled together into a cable form. Inthis manner the rolling apparatus of this invention may be utilized toproduce cords, twines, yarns and any other textile material which ismanufactured by rolling two or more spun, condensed, or partiallycondensed strands together.

While in the foregoing disclosure the rolling apparatus has beenillustrated as applied to but one bank of rubbing aprons or condensers,it is to be understood that a separate rolling device may be employedfor each bank of rubbing aprons or when the `tensile strength of thecondensed stock will stand it, a suitable arrangement of pulleys may beprovided so as to adapt a single rolling apparatus of the characterdescribed to handle the ends delivered by a plurality of banks ofcondensers. Vice versa the rolling apparatus may be of such proportionsas to handle only part of the ends delivered from a given bank ofcondensers.

From lthe foregoing description those skilled in the art will understandthat the features of the present invention may be applied to a greatvariety of textile machinery and that many modications in the specificdesign and arrangement of parts may be employed to take advantage of theprinciple of rolling preliminarily condensed textile stock in the mannerhereinbefore adverted to. It is to be distinctly understood, therefore.that such modifications in the details of construction,v and the use andadapta. tion of such features and combinations of features as do notdepart fromthe spirit of this invention are, although not specificallydescribed herein, contemplated by and within the scope of the appendedclaims.. i v

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. A device for treating textile stock, comprising, means for feeding aribbon of stock, means for preliminarily condensing the stock, and apair of oppositely moving spans of endless belts continuously travelingin a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel ofthe preliminarily condensed stock.

2. A device for treating textile stock, comprising, means for feeding alribbon of stock, means for preliminarily condensing the stock, and apair of oppositely moving spans of endless belts continuously travelingin a direction substantially perpendicular to the direction of travel ofthe preliminarily condensed stock, and means for controlling therelative speeds of said belts;

3. A textile machine, comprising, a condenser rarranged to receive andcondense a plurality of ends of textile material, a pair of endlessbelts arranged to receive the roving from the condenser between adjacentparallel spans of the respective belts, and means for operating saidbelts to move said adjacent spans in opposite directions substantiallyperpendicular to the direction of travel of the roving.

4. A textile machine comprising, a bank of rubbing aprons arranged toreceive and treat a plurality of ends of textile material, and a pair ofendless belts operatively arranged in front of and extending entirelyacross the delivery ends of said rubbing aprons, said belts having adja`cent spans moving in opposite directions substantially perpendicular tothe direction of delivery of the roving fromjthe rubbing aprons, andsaid ,spans arrangedto receive the `roving therebetween.

5. The combination with a textile condensing machine having rubbingaprons arranged in banks; of a pair of endless belts operating at rightangles -to the rubbing aprons and having the space betweenY adjacentspans of said belts arranged -to receive roving from said rubbingaprons, said belts being operated s that the adjacent spansmove inopposite directions parallel with each other.

6. The combination with a textile condensing machine having rubbingaprons arranged in banks; of a pair of endlessbelts operating at rightangles to the rubbing aprons and having the space between'adjacent spansof said belts arranged to receive roving from said rubbing aprons, saidbelts being operated sothat the adjacent spansmove in oppositedirections parallel with each other, and a platen contiguous with theinside of a belt at the region where roving is treated thereby. f

7. The combination with a textile condensing machine having rubbingaprons arranged in banks; of a pair of endless beltsoperating at rightangles to the rubbing aprons and having the space between adjacent spansof said belts arranged to receive roving from said rubbing aprons, saidbelts being operated so that the adjacent spans move in oppositedirections parallel with each other.

8. The combination with a textile condensing machine having rubbingaprons arranged in banks; of a pair of endless belts operating at rightangles to the rubbing aprons and having the space between adjacent spansof said belts arranged to receive roving from said rubbing aprons, saidbelts being operated so that the adjacent spans move in oppositedirections parallel with each other, a platen contiguous with the insideof a belt at the region where roving is treated thereby, and means foradjusting the platen normal to the belt.

9. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,preliminarily condensing the stock, and rolling the preliminarilycondensed stock between parallel oppositely moving substantially planarsurfaces.

l0. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,preliminarily condensing the stock, and rolling the preliminarilycondensed stock between parallel oppositely moving substantially planarsurfaces, the relative speeds of said surfaces being controlled inaccordance with tightness desired in the finished strands.

11. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,preliminarily condensing the stock, and rolling the preliminarilycondensed stock between parallel oppositely moving substantially planarsurfaces, the individual speeds of said surfaces being controlled todeliver the process comprising,

finished strands therefrom in the desired direction.

l2. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,preliminarily condensing a plurality of ends of textile stock, andconcurrently rolling all the ends between parallel oppositely movingsubstantially planar surfaces.

13. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,supplying stranded condensed textile material and passing the materialendwise between and in contact with substantially planar surfaces movingin opposite directions at right angles to the endwise movement of thestranded material.

14. In the art of making textile strands, the supplying a plurality ofstrands of condensed textile material, and passing the strands intocontiguous relation endwise between and in Contact with substantiallyplanar surfaces moving in opposite directions at right angles to theendwise movement of the stranded material. K

15. In the art of making textile strands, the process comprising,preliminarily condensing a plurality of ends of textile stock,concurrently rolling all the ends between parallel oppositely movingsubstantially planar surfaces, and imparting a draught to the condensedmaterial.

FRANK M. PECK.

